From Wounds To Worship

It seems that on every jnX mission trip, someone (especially Anthony Chan!) will get injured in one way or another, whether it be wounds, burns, illnesses, or stolen laptops. We would come back with scars and share these “war stories” for years to come.

It reminds me of a recent incident that deeply affected my wife and I. One Sunday, Wendy and I witnessed the baptism of a homeless man. He displayed two decades of drug and substance abuse on his crumpled face. His demeanor demonstrated years of living as an outcast and forgotten member of society. He wore deep physical and emotional wounds all over his body. If I saw him on the street, I would have rushed off and quickly passed him by.

And yet that morning, as his friend shared the testimony of God’s work of salvation on him, I realized that he had gained infinitely more than what a panhandling life could offer. After a long journey, he finally found home. Behind that sad face, his immense joy in receiving God’s grace and love was even more evident. And as he came out of the water, I realized that morning that he was leading all of us in worship in a way that was higher than many worship leaders I know. Because out of his brokenness and his homelessness, he pointed us to a truer picture of our amazing life-changing God. And that is worthy of our greatest worship.

Our wounds and our weaknesses are meant to lead us to worship. The solution to our emotional hurts, our dead-end jobs, our loveless marriages, our uncontrollable addictions, is to stop wandering and to find a home in our also-wounded Savior. And one day, when we gather again in heaven to share our “war stories” back on earth, Jesus will barge in and say, “Guys, check out my wounds right here on my hands and my feet!” And we will worship Him forevermore.